The Greatest Stakes
by FluxBlade
Summary: One small change brings a massive difference to Tellius. As the 'game' is set, two opponents attempt to maneuver the world to where they wish it.  One player takes a more direct move once the opening move has been made. Spoilers FE9/10.
1. A Pawn Has Moved

**A/N **Yes, I know my story isn't the first one to try this type of story I know, but I hope to go somewhere different with it than others have gone. Anyways spoilers of FE9 and 10 abound. Also names will be stolen from other Fire Emblem games for OCs, surprise, surprise. Though if there is a canon character that works...

And no, I don't own Fire Emblem.

* * *

Soren nodded to the two guards standing outside his father's strategy room. Good, it was Amelia and Franz, which meant that his father did not have a surprise waiting for him. Otherwise it would have been one of the elite guards outside. These two He examined and took note of eight people in the room, his father's four strongest, the four riders, next to them was Izuka and his personal advisor, two other strategists, and his father all stood around a table with the Crimean map taking it up. His father looked up and smiled as he kept his face blank. The fact his father smiled gave credibleness to his thoughts on the matter. Now if he was right, it would go well, except if he would be ordered to kill the secret Crimea princess when they reached Melior, mostly because he would have help with it.

"So, my son, would you agree to this plan?" The king motioned to the drawings on the paper. It was a good plan, as it cut off any escape, which wasn't what he needed right now. He looked it over, why did one of the strategists actually think instead of leaving it to him? Giving the map another look over, he pondered his next move. Though the plan was sound, it still had some weaknesses, specifically how fast the net could form. _It all falls on how much he wants the stronger first strike. _ He grimaced before adding,

"No, the plan gives them too much time to prepare Melior for defense, even with our initial strike at the borders, spreading our forces out into a partial net will give them a chance to notice our invasion. Remember, they do have a small force of Pegasus Knights, since the previous queen was a highly respected member of the Holy Guard. Besides Crowned Prince Ramon will be on the battlefield, which makes our reason for the net pointless. Marshalling our forces for a stronger initial strike will greatly enhance how it goes, and when they are caught off guard, they will have no time to escape. With the quick blow to Melior and its capture, Crimea will be broken, thus lessen our causalities, which will be needed for the next phase of the plan."

"We should capture more than enough of the sub-humans to defeat them." Izuka challenged as he glared at the prince.

"Those beastmen living in the trees believe that capture is more dishonorable then death, they are not like the ones that hide in Daein. Besides, we will need the men to hunt the ones that hide after they are routed. Besides if we are to drag the birdmen out of their caves on their islands, we need to show numbers, as the beastmen do not seem to strategize beyond hide in the forest."

"However, if they see our attack coming, they will have less difficulty escaping." Mark remarked as Soren pressed the edge of his fingers together.

"If they see our attack coming, either plan has problems. The net no longer works because if they know we are coming, they only need to remove a certain part of our forces to make it to the trees. To ensure the original plans can stand, I will lead a small contingency of Wyvern Riders to catch possible runners escaping south. If that is acceptable, of course." Ashnard smiled as he rested his hand on his son's shoulder.

"You have heard the sound reasoning of the prince, we will strike hard and strike fast, and Crimea shall fall for their alliance with the subhuman filth. Tell the troops to leave King Ramon and his wife to me."

Soren bowed to his father as the meeting came to an end, the strategists had fallen in the 'battle' to his hands. They were right, but he knew his father better, he wanted the riskier but bigger pay-off strategy. His father's lucky streak was odd at games of chance, he heard from his personal guards, he won a little bit more than he lost, but someone else got extremely lucky playing nearby. Which was a problem and opportunity for him, either the other chessmaster would get everything he wanted, or he himself would succeed. Fortunately, neither opponent had officially met in any capacity, and he held more of the hidden cards, especially since the other had no clue someone else knew the full extent of the game. It was official, he was getting nervous if he mixed his metaphors. His opponent's queen walked towards him, though the opponent hadn't learned quite yet he had painted the queen as black as his armor.

"My liege, the plans have been started, are you sure this is your wisest move?"

"Do not worry, we know what my father wishes, if he believes I will help draw in more for the flames of war, let him believe what he wants. Did you keep most of Daein's former Begnion Dracoknights near Talrega?" The man in black armor nodded as they continued down the hall. "Then all that is left is for me to lose my escorts at some point, and contact you. You will make sure he will be taken care of?"

"As my prince commands, though are you sure that Gawain's strength is enough? Are you willing to throw Crimea and the Daein soldiers to the grave but not your wyvern?"

"It is quite strong, though I doubt he is as strong as his namesake, but they will be suspicious if he was slain. Especially by only mere bandits. You know as well as I do what happens if we fail, it is a small price to pay. If my death could prevent [i]him[/i] from winning, then even that would be worth it."

"What I do not understand is why you do not order me to kill [i]him[/i]?" The knight reached for his golden sword, which was borrowed from the hidden Begnion treasury.

"And risk your hesitation or his ability to escape? Besides even with him removed, his pawns could easily accidentally trigger it. No, one does not win by knocking the board over, that just delays the game. He will be useful when we win, as he most likely wants to lose." He responded as the conversation was forced to an abrupt stop as they encountered more Daein soldiers.

"My prince, your mount is ready. What are our orders?"

"Cain, we will be following behind the main line, and once we cross the border, we will travel to the south a bit before heading toward the capital, hopefully we will catch any scouts that might have escaped that way." He quickly looked over the wyvern and smiled, his extra supplies were added.

"Of course, that's our prince, planning for everything." He sighed at the compliment. This squad would have been useful in taking his father down, but they were too loyal to his father to help. They believed his father would show mercy to him, the deluded fools. Of course, without their delusions, his other attempt would fail as well.

OoOoO

The journey continued on as the first attack in Crimea went well. His small force was not needed, which made it easy for him to be quite a bit higher than necessary. He was high enough that his men could not tell what he was doing, as they were instructed to stay a bit lower to be more appealing to archers.

Activating the magical stone he had been given by his mother, he contacted Zelgius, or rather as he was known, the Black Knight, "let me know if anything causes the plan to be in jeopardy, also remember to tell them not to let anyone else know about my death." There was no answer on the other side, but he did not expect any, unless the man was sure no one could overhear him. They were gambling with the very continent of Tellius, but they both understood it would be improbable to tell the truth to the rulers.

Besides, neither of them liked most of the Begnion senators, as it would be stupid to trust those that assassinated the previous apostle. Especially since it seemed obvious why they wanted her dead, if Zelgius's speculation was correct. He was surprised what could be learned if one was completely trusted, as long as he did not put the other player in danger, then he would not lose Zelgius. And he needed the man to believe his life was better spent not being thrown away, for if he lost that motivation, he would find himself dead with a sword sticking out of his back. He also could not hide, as Zelgius could use his sending stone to identify wherever he hid. He also knew that Zelgius would give him no warning if he felt that he was crossing that line.

He had been fortunate, it seems that his little message to Crimea had gotten through, as he was able to see the diversion the royal guards made allowed the Princess escape. The best part was that his father never actually had gotten to see the young woman. It helped the young sage when people followed his plan. His father's luck had struck again, and as he brought the wyvern closer to her path, as this was where his plan could fail. If his guards realized that none of them were actually guarding him before he was missing enough from his mount, or the Crimean Guards with the princess would refuse to let him come with them, he would have to fall to his secondary plan. Which would only be a stopgap measure at best. Fortunately, his men assumed he was still following, the wonders of trust sometimes. Either that or they are trying to see if he fell behind.

Putting his trusty spyglass away, he guided his mount to land. His mount stayed quiet as it landed near the forest area that the Crimean royal guards would have to travel through. He stumbled off as he disconnected his extra gear, and sent it off to head north, towards Melior. He found himself a tree to lean against as he rested, a small grin sneaking onto his face. He should be able to handle what he was carrying, and even if the worst-case scenario came up, he could survive a bit in hiding. Assuming that he did not miss his bed too much, this thought caused him to chuckle quietly. His father may never face him again, and he could start the real game with his opponent. It would drive his father into a rage to be considered a pawn, nothing more.

His thoughts were interrupted by a couple of dying shrieks as he cautiously moved through the forest. The princess needed to be alive, he needed someone willing to engage Ashnard, and he couldn't trust the laguz to care enough until it was too late. They could not fight an offensive war with any finesse. He did not have enough pull at home to successfully run a civil war. He gazed over the area, the only moving soldiers were garbed in black armor. He silently cursed as his hands ball up. _I guess it is time for plan B-_

_Wait_, looking closer, he noticed that they were marching someone in red armor, his hands tied in front of him. He kept his head raised high, which pointed to the Princess still being alive. The soldiers marched off and once they were gone, he smiled. Now he would just have to find whoever was guarding the Princess. However, it seemed more likely the Princess was separated from her guards. With this in mind he took off to the first group of trees that could conceivable hide someone. He looked around them, checking to make sure she was not hiding behind tree trunks, unfortunately, it seems that he would have to look a bit harder.

He finally had found the girl, asleep, after searching at least five different groups of trees, at least he had been right about the area. Shaking her awake, he kept looking around the area. The girl stirred as she brushed her green hair out of her face as she watched him carefully.

"Princess Elincia, we need to move now. I'll explain on the way." He grabbed one of the two spare cloaks and threw it over her. He grabbed the other cloak and slung it over himself.

"Who are you?" She stayed on the ground as she asked her question.

"I'll explain more later, but there is a mercenary group nearby that can get us to Gallia."

"How did you know that?" She started to fidget with the robe, which he noticed had covered a staff.

"Because you are south of Melior and Gallia is the obvious choice unless you were trying to sneak into Begnion, which would be highly foolish as King Ashnard already has forces guarding that route." His gaze froze at the sight to his right. A very short wall of black was approaching, easily seen against the backdrop of trees they were passing between. "They're coming." He gently tugged for her to follow him. Fortunately, she complied as she put on the cloak as they started to move quickly. And unless the group had a dedicated scout, they should be fine.

Upon noticing a particular set of bushes, which seemed to be sufficient for his purposes, he slowed them down.

"I thought we want to reach the mercenaries as soon as possible." She questioned as he shifted his hand to putting his arm interlocking with hers.

"Come on, we're going into the underbrush over there. They won't expect you to be masquerading as a commoner on a tryst with her lover." He actually had another reason, he needed to know where they were traveling. If they were just scouting the area for the princess or did they have another objective? It was odd for them to be scouting without wyverns, even if all had been assigned to other duties. But it was possible that the capital fell too fast.

Finding the best place to sit in the brushes, the two sat down as he positioned them so he could see them marching by. "Don't move until I say otherwise." Silence was the only response he got as the moving wall continued on. It seems those looking were far too use to hunting laguz, who could not sit still very long, if the stories were true. Even if he could have found a use in it, he could not exactly condone the hunts, specifically because he would have to go after his mother.

Eventually, the column moved on, which was still a worry for him. If they hired the mercenaries to hunt her, as long as they aren't paid to kill her, they should be fine. But if Gawain believed it better for his group to work with his father's forces, they would be in trouble, since Gawain was supposed to be his queen in the game, and he did not think the trade for Zelgius was worth it. Since even with his incredible skill, Zelgius did not believe he could defeat him. And if Zelgius could not, there was no way he could either.

"Have they gone yet?" Elincia whispered as he finally paid attention to the person next to him. He noticed she was blushing, and moved a bit back as she started breathing rapidly. _It is quite a good thing she follows orders well. Make it easier later._

"Yes, we should make it to the mercenaries' fort without worry." No sense to worry her. He had them walk slowly through the underbrush, some of the guard might double back. Especially since he did not recognize the leader of the bunch, they would have likely just assumed he was lying, if he claimed his title, especially since he was now with the Princess and not escorting her to his father. Though since they did not know, he might be able to try another web of lies.

His eyes bulged as his thoughts quickly changed at the sight at the mercenary base, the soldiers were attacking the base. Looking over the combatants, it seems that the paladin wearing silver armor and her long red hair in tresses was the reason for the attack. If the leader assumed she was a fugitive Crimean Knight, he would believe himself duty bound to remove her. This meant they were here to hire mercenaries just to add forces that knew the area. He spied a blue armored knight that was pushing back two others with a steel lance while a sniper was ensuring that neither one of the combatants would be harmed. Both melee combatants used the walls of their base to keep the enemy from approaching.

"Stay out of sight, I am going to help them." She nodded, though he noticed her gripping the staff she carried. It would be doubtful they would need it now, especially if the rest of the mercenaries returned, if Zelgius's spies are to be believed. He reached into his cloak as he snuck towards the soldiers' rearguard, while slipping out an Elthunder tome from his pack. Typical for most Daein squad leaders, they stayed in the back while letting the rest of the men fight. The noise of the actual fight covered his approach upon him. He guessed they were like many novice Daein soldiers, who would run if their leader was struck down. Muttering the words of power, he was able to pull off two casts as the bolts of lightning struck at the man. While the rearguard quickly turned towards him, the death yell from their leader broke their formation, as the men started to panic and run off. He smirked as he kept his eyes on the retreating soldiers. If Petrine was in command, they might as well have fallen upon their weapons, it would have hurt less and taken less time.

Once assured they had not stumbled upon the princess or would be returning to avenge their commander, he turned back to the mercenary fort. He caught the sniper's gaze who tsked and looked away, before walking towards the red-haired paladin.

"Thank you, stranger, may I ask what bring you to our fort, are you looking for work? And do you have news as to why Daein soldiers are in Crimea?" She questioned as she moved to clean her weapon.

"My name is Soren," he paused and enjoyed the moment that no one connected him to his rank before continuing, "actually, I have a job proposal for the Greil Mercenaries, I am here asking for aid in escorting someone to Gallia." The sniper quickly glared as he continued to check the enemy soldiers for usable weapons. "And Daein soldiers are here because they have invaded Crimea. Melior has most likely fallen, do you know when the rest of your team will return?"

"Shortly, do you or your companion need anything right now?" Soren turned and noticed that the princess had left on the underbrush while they were talking. "My name is Titania, may I ask why you are heading to Gallia?" Elincia was about to respond before being cut off,

"I assume your leader is missing and it would be easier for her not to have to repeat the story multiple times."

"What, so that your lies are easier to keep track off?" The sniper sneered at him.

"Shinon, if they were really attempting to betray us, wouldn't they have helped against us earlier?" The blue armored knight questioned. The comment did not seem to persuade the sniper, but he expected that, besides just because he helped out does not mean anything. The three could have most likely handled the fight without help. The two took the offered drinks as Soren explained to the best of his ability what had happened. He noticed how the paladin was watching him while attempting to hide it as just idle curiosity. Fortunately, it seems she wanted reinforcements before speaking up.

The discussion of Daein's movements ended as the three shifted in their seats, Titania and the blue knight Gatrie, relaxed their posture, while Shinon moved to a more aggressive posture.

"Titania, who are these two?" They both turned as Soren had to correct Zelgius's description with the man in front of him. The brown haired man gave them both a look over, while revealing nothing on his thoughts about them.

"Soren wishes to hire us to escort the young woman, Elincia, and himself to Gallia. They supposedly have quite the story to tell us." She finished with a smile. He nodded to the two as Soren looked at Elincia and waved her on.

Soren enjoyed watching those that were around, as the rest of the force seemed to have trickled in, though the two youngest seemed to not have fought yet, though the boy definitely practiced archery, as he could see the calluses on the boy's hands. Gawain, or as he now called himself Greil, seemed neutral, while the rest of the group seemed incredulous.

"So, we have heard her story, but what about yours?" The man asked as he placed his axe on the table.

"I am a traitor to Ashnard, once I learned of this invasion planned, I realized that the only way to hinder him would be to ensure that Princess Elincia escaped to Gallia, safely. Once I made my plans, I faked my death and found her on the most probably route she could have taken there. I also have enough to pay you for the escort mission. I am able to defend myself with magic, as your subordinates can attest to and I do have limited abilities with a healing staff."

"Very well, we have heard you case, now Mist, Rolf, please escort this two outside." The younger ones grabbed Elincia's hands and helped her up as they walked outside, the young woman following her eyes wide. Soren nodded and followed. Once outside he walked towards another building and leaned against it as Mist started to bombard the Princess with questions. He smirked at how Elincia was unable to answer the questions the girl had. Since she had not lived like most people would expect of a child of royalty. Rolf seemed to be watching him, but was unable to ask the question he had.

"Yes, Rolf, what is it you want to know?" The boy ducked his head before responding,

"If Daein's King was wrong why didn't you stop him?" He asked.

"Rolf, do you think you could beat Titania in a fight if she was serious?" He shook his head at that. "That is the difference in ability between Ashnard and I."

"You could have gotten that close to him?" Elincia wondered as the two broke off their conversation.

"Yes, how else do you expect I knew about you, he didn't go around telling everyone about you. Though now that you have escaped, I won't be surprised if all of the Daein forces were to find out about you." She nodded as the green-armored rider walked out.

"Soren, Princess Elincia, Greil wishes to finalize the contract." They nodded as they walk back in as Soren walked over to see a parchment written up. Reading the parchment and frowning, he commented,

"I doubt we need a formal contract, though the sum is reasonable for who is being guarded." He shuffled through his supplies, and upon reaching the largest pouch he had, tossed it on the table. "We accept." The blue-haired boy's eyes bulged as Greil inspected the heavy bag. He nodded as he handed it to Titania before grabbing his axe as quite a few of the mercenaries broke away to start packing. Elincia volunteered herself to help with the food gathering as Soren followed Greil and the red-haired man named Rhys. They entered a different building with many, many stacks of papers and books, the two mercenaries started pulling documents and sorting them into two piles.

"Excuse me, do you have a map of Tellius that will be burnt?" Greil paused his sorting as he watched him, as Soren continued, his two hands meeting at the fingertips, "I was hoping to draw on the map a fake route that would be taken to get to Begnion, using Flaguerre as our destination. A fake burned map should be enough that the soldiers might consider it the truth." Greil tossed him a map that did not show anything more than physical traits of the continent, but with his understanding of the area, the route he drew should suffice.

He waited until the two lit the mount on fire before using the flames very calmly. Though the grimace he had as he smacked the fire on the paper out revealed he was not as insulated as his mother and her relatives might have been. The paper was close enough that it looked like it was hastily thrown and far enough away that the mostly damaged paper would look decent enough. Even if they determined it was a fake or ignore it, any more confusion would be useful. Returning to the main area, he noticed that the rest of the group seemed ready, sans Titania, Gatrie, and Shinon, who were not there. Then again, they most likely had them scouting ahead. Unless one of the wyvern brigades were sent south, they should be fine. The sounds of pounding hooves drew his attention to Titania's approach.

"Commander, the path looks clear for now."

"Very well, everyone, move out." With that, Titania took the lead as Greil formed the rear guard. Elincia seemed to stay in the middle with Mist and the blue-haired swordsman. Soren moved closer to the green armored rider, and asked,

"Pardon me for asking, but you used to be a Crimean Knight at one time?" The man gripped his reins tighter as he responded,

"Yes, I used to be, what made you guess that though?"

"How well your horse is kept, and the fact you see to be much more structured in your posture and movements. I'm sorry but I did not get your name."

"Oscar, and my brother over there is Boyd and you have already been introduced to Rolf. It is a pleasure to be formally introduced, Soren." He nodded as he noticed that Elincia was increasing her pace to reach them.

"I apologize for interrupting, but when you found me, did you see any royal guards?" She fidgeted with her hands as the question came out.

"Only one, a red-armored knight, he was taken captive. It seems that he was the only one, and since I saw no others, it is doubtful any others were slain." She smiled at that, though he did not add that her family was dead, well Renning might have been forced to fight in Ashnard's pits, but he would not do it willingly. If Izuka got his hands on him though, Soren shuddered. As he looked over the group, he made his decision, once they were in Gallia proper, he would reveal the truth to Gawain and then see how he reacted. If he could not secure his help, then it would be up to him, Zelgius, and Elincia, who still had no clue she would be apart of this plan. However, he believed she would be able to handle it, since she was not a wreck like he was worried about upon being rescued, nor was she demanding impossibilities. Now the hard part, surviving in Gallia long enough to convince Gawain to take back his old name.

* * *

Well, let me know what you think. Also the story will start to break even more with FE 9 canon as the story continues, and 10, well let's just say not a chance.


	2. Destination Gallia

**A/N **Well, here is chapter 2 of this story, thanks to PINKDIAMOND4000 for the review. Let's see here, what the major event change that happens is mentioned here, which does start to change where this story is going, including who has been recruited.

Anyways, I do not own Fire Emblem.

* * *

The trees parted to reveal to the travelers that it seems that the Daein army had not successfully pursued them. "Finally, we may have civilization, even if it is sub-human scum." The group's sniper commented.

"These sub-humans, how powerful are they?" The blue-haired boy, Ike asked the group.

"The proper term is laguz, and trust me, we do not want to jeopardize the Princess position even more than it is by using improper terms." As the look of confusion over most of the group centered on him, he explained, "Gallia's treaty with Crimea seems to only be held by the nobility, and if Gallia's nobles are like most, they are quite hesitant to change. It will not matter if their King wants to help, if their nobles do not, then at most they might give us a token force." Soren explanation had pushed the brothers to start discussing what it could mean, while Ike received confirmation from his father. Titania moved her horse closer and complimented,

"You seemed quite informed on the politics of different nations."

"Yes, it is part of the reason that Ashnard did not seem to be too worried about a quick counterattack by Gallia." He ignored the implied question as he learned quite often, the best way to avoid the word game is to completely change the conversation. Though it would not work long, usually when he employed the tactic, he was able to avoid the person for weeks to months at a time. Well, except for his mother, the sending stone meant she had easy access to him. "Greil must be a really strong leader for you to quit the Crimea Army." She narrowed her eyes as he explained, "The Daein forces attacking your fort must have assumed you were Crimean Cavalry, that and like Oscar, you are more disciplined than most mercenaries and much more disciplined than the rest here."

"Shouldn't have one of the Gallia patrols stumbled upon us by now?" Gatrie's question cut into their conversation as the group continued to watch for any signs of movement. The sound of a wyvern's shriek grabbed the mercenaries' attentions.

"Form up, Shinon, I want numbers, Mist, Rolf, take the princess into cover over there." The two grabbed her hands as the three ran into the bushes. Soren removed his trusty Elwind tome as Wyvern Riders appeared, given a physical presence to the sounds. They made a quick landing and dropped off a soldier each. The soldiers started to charge, their lances at the ready while Shinon let loose an arrow. Gawain hefted his axe as he countered-charged. The wyvern riders passed over their soldiers on the ground and Gawain as most attempted to take down Oscar and Titania. Oscar battered away the first two strikes as a third opponent was dropped by the blast of wind magic. Titania was not so lucky, as three of the six attacking her scored blows, but each one found itself with a larger injury. The one advantage the mercenaries had was Rhys, who quickly gave Titania the healing she needed. One of the wyvern riders attempt to remove said obstacle, but found Ike as a target instead, as he shoved Rhys out of the way. Gatrie was attempting to keep the last two riders occupied long enough for Boyd to force one to retreat. Soren started to chant another attack before noticing two of the riders leaving Titania behind to attempt to hunt down Mist and Rolf in the bushes. Taking aim, his spell heavily wounded the rider, as the other one was dropped by Shinon's arrow. Soren next blast against the wounded flier was dissuaded as another wyvern rider attempted to skewer him on his lance. While being able to dodge the attack, it disrupted his spell. A scream erupted from the wounded wyvern as rider and mount fell. Bringing his attention back to his own opponent, Soren released a quick blast of wind upon the enemy. As the wyvern rider fell, he gave the battlefield a quick glance over, the rest of the enemy had found themselves quickly overwhelmed. Even the soldiers were finished as each seemed to have been dropped by a single axe slash each. Greil rushed over as the last wyvern fell to another of Shinon's arrow.

"Excellent job everyone." He praised as Ike scratched the top of his head while Boyd beamed at the praise. Shinon marched into the bushes and dragged Rolf out. The young man was beaming even larger than his middle brother, as his oldest shook his head.

"Hey, pipsqueak, why did you steal one of Shinon's bows?" Boyd marched towards his brother whose smile lowered a bit.

"I didn't steal it." He stuck his tongue out as he hid behind the older sniper.

"Boyd, Rolf, we don't have time to argue, we need to keep moving." Greil barked to the two as Mist and Elincia joined the group. The mercenaries fell into a similar formation except with Titania riding back more as a rear scout. "And yes, Boyd, I saw that Rolf came by that bow properly." Rolf stumbled at the explanation that drew Boyd's gaze as Shinon pahed at the byplay. Soren smiled at how well the force did against the attackers. Of course if Greil had not been there, they might have had to make a more last stand in the bushes. He added the fake map to his list of attempts that did not work, which was quite larger than he was willing to admit. At least Zelgius convinced him not to attempt, take the crown by force. He remembered how Izuka, in one of the few moments of 'niceness,' showed how much farther Soren could go. His father being pleased with how the fight went, even though he lost utterly, confused him. Then again, at the time, he supposedly only had his tactical skills at that point.

"Soren, are you ok?" Elincia's question interrupted his thoughts as he turned towards her.

"Yes, though thank you for the consideration." He smiled, they were definitely Petrine's soldiers, he had no qualms with removing them from Daein. She was a stupid commander and far too loyal to his father. The worst part was this stupidity was passed onto her subordinates. "Hopefully these forces will be the only ones we will run into before we meet a representative of Gallia. However, I do request that where I am from to not be mentioned if possible."

"If it is possible, I will try. Though I promise to vouch for you if it is discovered." She added with a smile. "If it wasn't for you, I would have probably been captured."

"Well princess, we'll see how strong your word is, we have incoming beastmen." Shinon interrupted as he started to bring his bow up before lowering it when Greil's hand rested on his shoulder. To punctuate his words, a group of about ten laguz rushed into view. The obvious leader, as with typical laguz in being the first into battle, untransformed.

"Halt, what brings you to Gallia's borders?" He questioned as he gave the group a look over.

Elincia stepped forward and declared, "I am Elincia Ridell Crimea, daughter of King Ramon, and I wish to meet with King Caineghis." Soren smirked as the laguz jaw lowered itself quite a bit. "These people here are escorts that I hired."

"Very well, I will escort you to the capital, however, I will not be able to bring so many foreigners unannounced to the capital. I will have a guide direct you to an abandoned fort nearby."

"Is it Fort Tanata? Because if it is, we know how to get there."

"What thoughtful guests. I hope you don't feel it presumptuous of me to have some food and drinks sent there." The group smiled at his statement.

"That is greatly appreciated. We should also let you know we had to engage a squadron of wyvern riders and soldiers, their corpses are a bit behind us."

"Thank you for the information, Kezhda, take half of the forces here and continue the patrol, the rest of you, we will be taking the princess to the capital. Princess, if you will come with me." She nodded as they left, half to investigate the claim, the rest acting like an honor guard.

"We have a destination, mercenaries, let's go." Greil ordered as the group continued on. Soren stayed pretty quiet, as he was not sure how he wanted to deal with the stares he knew were shot his way. The worst part for him was if Greil decided he was a threat. If Greil still held the power he used to, there was no way it would be possible for him to survive in a direct conflict. He was not sure he could defeat him even getting a free shot at him. Fortunately, it seemed that for most of the group, Rolf's shooting was more interesting than the Daein traitor. Of course he had to have bought points with his fighting at the last battle. Unlike the first time, there would have been serious casualties if he had not been there. These thoughts tided him over until they reached the castle, and the laguz kept his word, as there was a delivery of fresh food. The group descended upon it as though they were starved.

The group had started to prepare for the evening as Soren walked over to Greil, who had just convinced his daughter to go to sleep and let Rhys rest. Soren stood and waited as he watched the famed general act so very unlike his former self according to Zelgius. Of course, looking over Greil's history, his actions showed off a very wily man. The fact he was able to avoid Ashnard for so long when he wanted the medallion spoke to his intelligence as well as his sword arm. Though the fact he used an axe bothered Soren. Was it just a disguise, and if so, how come he did not have a sword as a back-up? Or was he trying to add to the deception? However, going down this route would just be an exercise in futility. All he knew was Zelgius considered himself still inferior to the man in ability and Zelgius usually was good about comparing himself to another. Thus when he told Soren that he could defeat his father only if it was a one on one battle, it had forced his hand to change from assassinate his father, blame it on Begnion, to now what he was running. Also, knowing his luck, Zelgius would have been called upon when he was needed. Soren drew himself out of contemplation, he noticed that Greil knew he was there, but was not responding. He kept quiet as well, if he did not want to talk, he did not want to force it now, even though it would be most beneficial. He would just have to talk to Zelgius about the conditions. Though, hopefully he would find the secondary condition he was looking for. Especially since he was not sure where Danomill was sent, the monster would pay for breaking one of his pawns. That and the fact he sucked at the torture for information. He was great if you want a gibbering wreck, but even Izuka could get more accurate information from someone.

"Yes, Soren, did you want something?" Greil seemed to have waited until he drew himself into again.

"I was hoping we go for a walk and talk." Soren explained as he watched the man, who nodded as he followed after him. Great, it was just like talking to Zelgius when he had not been around a battle for a while. At least he knew enough to be able to get some reaction, just hopefully not a violent one.

The two found themselves on the beach, the waves ebbing and flowing as Greil started to tap his foot. "Gawain, I need your help with something more difficult than just helping Elincia reclaim her country." The man's lowered his eyebrows as Soren continued, "While I am a traitor to my father, I believe that releasing the dark god is the worst thing for Tellius. I know my father seeks it, but he isn't the true problem. Someone else has been manipulating him. Mind you it isn't that hard to do so, but there is someone that I cannot get at who is pushing for the dark god's revival." That statement set Gawain starting to pace.

"Are you saying someone else is manipulating Ashnard?"

"Well, more of giving him a suggestion and letting him run with it. The worst part is, even if we took that person down, there are others that might accidently release the dark god without meaning to."

"And how would they accidently release the dark god?" He questioned while staring at him.

"The Begnion Senators, at least the ones in power wish to wipe out the laguz. Crimea either will help Gallia or join with its suzerain, Daein could possibility follow. All it would take is someone threatening my mother or perceived that way, and my uncles will try to come to her aid. That is assuming my grandfather's rage is not set off. Then all of Tellius would be engaged in war, and the end of the world."

"You're one of the branded! Is Goldoa aligned with Daein?" He checked as the first signs of fear appeared.

"No, I've never met anyone on my mother's side of the family, though if I have heard right, Ashnard tried to trap one of my uncles because I could not transform. However, neither came, though that may have been because of my grandfather and Ashnard let me live to see if I could at least be a powerful warrior. When I was about four, I found two soldiers playing chess, and after suggesting moves to the losing player to win, he had me trained as a tactician. I learned through soldiers talking that a medallion was stolen from Palmeni Shrine. This started me on the path to learn on what needs to be done." Soren explained as he let out a sigh of relief, he was not like some beorc, who would have told him to shut up and leave. Which in Gallia might as well have sentenced him to death.

"So, what plan is this?"

"Well, since I could not defeat Ashnard in battle or stop his invasion of Crimea, I had to ensure that Elincia gets help, which if my guess is right, will have to be Begnion. However, to actually get at Ashnard, who will be staying in Melior, the forces will be marching through Daein. There are a couple of places where I have friendly Daein forces that will join me and Marado did not join in the war. If I spread the news that my father is being controlled by Izuka, which has enough substance to the rumor to stick with enough people, helping Crimea be freed should convince Elincia to keep Daein under my control. While rebuilding, I would make it great pains to show that Izuka and my father were up to much worse than just war. I would have discovered that the leaders in the Begnion Senate assassinated the previous apostle and then blamed it on the herons, so they could be wiped out. Then I would spread the rumor that the apostle would not be able to hear the goddess again because of this trespass." Soren paused as he ran out of breath.

"So, most of your plan relies on lies and falsehoods then." Greil frowned at his comment.

"Not this one, I have reasonable proof that they did in fact assassinate the previous apostle and attempted to on her granddaughter. And if my source is right, it was because she was a branded and was willing to announce it to the world." Greil's frown deepened as Soren continued, "do you mind if I ask someone else to meet with us? I need to use the sending stone to contact him."

"You are not planning to tell the Princess?"

"Not yet, since the second part of the plan is not needed to known by her. Though I will be telling her about my identity once we are gone from Gallia. I first wanted to make sure you at least weren't going to see how easily my head came off when you swung." He nodded as Soren reached into his bag for the white stone that he spoke into, "Zelgius, this is Soren. Gawain is willing to talk, we're on the beach near Fort Tanata." Turning back to Greil he added, "he will be using something called warp powder, which allows him to travel great distances, but weakens him. When I tried it once, I woke up from being unconscious for a few days. Of course that also might have been because I was 12 then." Greil nodded as Soren sat down. The quiet was broken when the two heard the clank of armor hitting the ground.

"Prince Soren, Gawain it is an honor." Greil stared at the man in armor as he knelt down to Soren.

"So, that would explain how you knew who I used to be. I am glad to see that you have done well. A rider of Daein, I have heard."

"He's also the probably commander to Begnion's central army." Soren beamed at him.

"That explains how your second plan will fall. I assume he is your trump card, then."

"No, General Gawain, you are needed to reveal yourself if we are to convince enough of the Daein forces to not throw their lives in Ashnard's service. Otherwise, Daein will not be able to help the apostle when the senate turns on her." Seeing Greil open his mouth to speak, Zelgius continued, "she is quite willing to continue her grandmother's laws, which include repealing of Laguz Slavery. A few of the nobles still keep them, though if what I have heard from Sephiran, she has been trying to uncover it. Though she would prefer to keep the news out of the general public's knowledge."

"So, General Gawain, are you willing to help us save Tellius?" Soren asked, his heart racing.

"I will have to think about it, but I promise that the Greil Mercenaries will keep you safe as long as you do not threaten our client or any of my people." He smiled at the response, it was about as good as he could hope.

"Zelgius, what news do you have to report?"

"As expected, your father is pushing his forces out from the capital, quite a bit of the Crimea forces that were not captured are in hiding. Izuka is using Gritnea Tower for his experiments. Unfortunately, Renning was captured to ensure some of the Crimean Army's escape." Zelgius paused as he stabbed one of the two swords he was carrying into the beach, "He has successful used the feral potion on him, and he now goes as Betram. He is stronger, but his mind is broken. He replaced Tauroneo as a rider." Soren turned a bit green as Greil looked between the two.

"Izuka created a way for Laguz to permanently stay transformed, however, they lose their mind, they only follow orders given by the ones that transformed them. They are referred to as 'Feral Ones.' With a rider there, that means the defenses also include his forces. Which means we cannot strike against him without our own small army. Zelgius could strike him down, but he would get identified, and I cannot afford to lose his ability to seem loyal yet. Though, when we have the power, Izuka will be found, and he will be destroyed."

"While we cannot strike at him, your other target is at a much easier location to hit. Danomill is in charge of one of the Crimea prison camps, and none of his men would probably shift." Soren smirked at the news.

"Danomill, he sounds familiar, he was a bit aggressive if I recall." Greil commented.

"Only thing he is useful for is breaking someone, however, he isn't good at getting information. He is very similar to Izuka if anything. Zelgius, I will let you know what I need, but I would suggest getting extra sets of armor."

"Understood, I now will take my leave." Soren nodded and stood as Zelgius stood up, grabbed some powder out of his bag, threw it down, and vanished.

"What are you planning to do with the set of armor?" Greil wondered as he turned towards the ocean.

"It is something that requires your cooperation, if not, I have another plan. Though it looks like Zelgius left you a present." Soren stood as he studied the golden blade. "I have never seen Zelgius with this blade before, do you have an idea on what this may be?" Greil shook his head as he lifted the blade and walked back to camp as Soren smiled. He knew that Gawain would help him and he did not seem to hate him for his brand. Either that or he was dead before the sun rose. Zelgius had kept his word and did not attack his teacher following Ashnard's orders. Life was looking good for him, he would soon have a second queen and the path of his victory would be set. Soon his opponent would see that he did not truly want to win and would leave his foolish thoughts behind him. Unless he was seeking death, if that was the case, then he would give it to him. Though hopefully he was wrong about that, this thought was his last before falling asleep.

Pounding on his wall awoke Soren from sleep as he quickly blinked awake and looked up to see Shinon leaning against the wall. "The Commander said you had something to tell us." Once the message was passed on, the sniper walked out. Soren quickly worked on preparing himself for the day, though he knew they would be stuck here for a few days. Once finished, he stuck his tomes away as he walked into the main area, where the smells of breakfast assaulted his nose.

"Good morning, Soren, I was wondering if you would tell everyone here about what we talked about last night? " Greil requested before returning to eating. Soren sighed as he grabbed a plate of Mist's cooking, as he shook his head.

"As long as I am not interrupted." He received nods from everyone. "Very well, I am not just the tactician for Ashnard's invasion, I am also his son. I realized that he plans to conquer the whole world, Crimea was just a stepping stone. There was no way for me to warn Crimea that would allow the invasion to fail. However, I was able to give them a bit of a breather, one being Elincia is alive. Also I have quite a bit of forces in Daein who will join with me. Especially since one of my father's trusted confidants is a spirit charmer named Izuka. His monstrosity is horrific, to say the least. He has had my father's ear for at least a year. I had hoped that the Greil Mercenaries would be willing to help me keep my country from being completely destroyed."

"That's how you knew so much about the political landscape." Titania commented before questioning, "Why didn't you stay in Daein to raise the army? And are we going to have to expect Daein assassins to remove you?"

"My father does not know I am alive, thus we have no assassins to deal with. I gave my 'honor guard,' who are far too trusting and very simple, the slip in Crimea, and then had it look like bandits took me down. Also, the Daein force I can call upon is not strong enough to over-throw the ones that my father would still have under his command. Though if I added the force to one that was aiding Princess Elincia, it would be enough."

"And how many forces are expecting to join you, whelp?"

"I have at least one full battalion of Wyvern Riders, Marado has sent no forces to help Ashnard, my mother's honor guard, All of Alan's and Darin's forces, which includes half of the guards on the border between Crimea and Daein."

"That does not seem to be that much."

"The ones mentioned will be helping us, I have quite a few that might switch sides, especially with some news I hope to have with us. Though I am making my plans assuming the worst case scenario."

"Does the princess know the truth?"

"Not yet, I haven't had a good time to tell her, I would prefer the laguz do not know about who I am. My father found it amusing to have laguz hunting as an official pastime for our soldiers. I assume you wish to talk among yourselves then?" Greil nodded as Soren took his food and as he passed Mist, he spoke quietly, "The food's delicious." He continued on, as he barely heard the quiet thanks that was her response. He found a good place to park himself on the beach as he pulled out his sending stone.

"Mother, is this a good time?"

"Soren, I heard that you were dead, that bandits killed you. Are you alright? Where are you? You are coming home now, right?"

"I'm sorry I need to keep my location a secret, and can you make sure that no one knows that I am alive. I will be coming home soon, but I am working on getting help, soon I will have stopped father."

"No, Soren, you're just a baby, it's too reckless, most of the army is loyal to Ashnard." His mother countered.

"The Black Knight is working for me and I found Gawain, he seems likely to want to help us."

"I see…" She paused as she took that information to light, "but it is still too risky."

"Any riskier than letting his plan succeed?" Of course, telling his mother the whole truth was out of the question, but the fact that Ashnard wanted to rule the world was still quite dangerous.

"No, if it comes to that, let my father take care of it."

"He won't move until it is too late, you know how he is. Listen, this is the best plan I have, especially since Gawain should be enough for Ashnard. Add the Black Knight, when we meet on the field of battle again, it will be over. Mother I'll let you know when I am in Daein proper again. It might be a few months though. Love you." He stuck the stone back into his bag as it muffled her response. Turning his attention to the sea, he watched the waves as it continued its pattern of ebbing and flowing.

"Hey, whelp, the Commander said we'll help you." Soren beamed as the messenger tsked and walked away. He followed, and now they just needed to here from the Gallian king.

OoOoO

The meeting with the Gallian royalty went more or less as he had expected. He even was able to hide his identity, and Elincia was given a gift to pay the mercenaries, which allowed Soren to avoid paying them right now. They had received three escorts, Mordecai, Lethe, and Ranulf. Mordecai would be easy for him to get along with, though he did not expect to have a deep conversation with him, Ranulf seemed to be the smartest cat laguz he had ever met, though the number he had official met could be counted on one-hand. Lethe would be the problem, especially since she seemed to be like many laguz and know he was a branded. Of course her attitude towards the beorc was also atrocious, so he could hide a bit better.

"We have a pegasus knight coming in." The sniper at least was far more helpful in identifying potential problems than he was at socializing. As the knight flew closer, he notices that her armor seems to be of a higher ranked knight. He kept his hands under his robe in case the Apostle was attempting to start a battle. After all, with his string of good luck, something had to give.

"Hey, that's the knight we helped when clearing out pirates right before being attacked by Daein in our fort. Perhaps she wishes to reward us for the help." Shinon glared at his teammate as Greil kept his hand on his axe. The action worried the Daein prince, as Greil had given Ragnell to Ike to keep safe. Soren had only seen Greil use a sword during training with Ike, and quite a bit of his swings were stiffer than they should have been. Ike had started to pick up on it, which at least meant he was improving.

"Hey, Ike, it's me." The young man raised his eyebrows at the greetings.

"Marcia, what are you doing here?"

"I decided that I need to repay you for your help earlier. I was hoping to join your group." All but Rolf and Mist seemed surprised at this declaration.

"You're willing to give up your job with the Begnion pegasus knights, let me guess, you can't handle the work-load and hoped to make an easier living." The rider took a couple of deep breaths as Greil kept his hostile pretense up.

"Crackers, I'll work twice as hard as anyone else. Besides, I am looking for my brother, and being part of a mercenary group means I have better chance at moving around to find him. Since you already have changed locations once before, I'm guessing you'll be still moving for a while." She smiled back as Greil's response was stopped by Soren grabbing his arm.

"Do you want to hire her? I could see a benefit for myself to have a personal emergency ride out of battles. Especially if I can convince her to stay on after finding her brother. Daein could use a properly trained pegasus knights, we've always had problems dealing with their formations." Greil looked over his group, the Princess and the laguz as Marcia landed a bit away from the group.

"I'm assuming when she was not helping you directly she would be acting like one of us, right?"

"Unless I have her on a mission, which would include keeping me alive, she would have the standing order to follow your commands, besides she did say she would work twice as hard as anyone else, and I'm saving the world. She has her work cut out for her." Greil chuckled as Soren walked forward.

"My name is Soren, I am not exactly apart of the mercenaries, but they are doing a job for me. I could really use a pegasus knight for a few other things as well. I'll be with them for a while, so you would have plenty of places to look for him. I can pay you enough to make sure that you have supplies for yourself and your pegasus, but until I get to somewhere, I will not have enough money to pay you the full amount. We can then negotiate the rest of your salary then. Is that acceptable?"

"What are my responsibilities?" She narrowed her gaze at him.

"Usually it would be to supplement the mercenaries in battle, though you would also have the task in ensuring my protection. Also I may have you run messages and gather supplies that I need from towns or other similar actions. And if there is anything else, we would discuss it first and pay would have to be adjusted." He stated with a small smile as he reached out with his hand. She took it with her own smile. "Your only order for now is to get to know everyone here. Also, the laguz are to be treated with the same courtesy as the mercenaries." That was followed by a salute as the group started on. Soren tried to keep the smile on his face from erupted too largely. _I finally did something that neither my father or Crimea has been able to do, have one of the Holy Guard work for me without having to marry one of them to do it._ With their new companion, the group continued towards Crimea, and the transport to Begnion.

* * *

So, let me know how it is. Also a heads up, my next update will not be as quick.


End file.
